The Tale of Flash and Rusty
Written by: Fionnuala B.
Every morning, the new MBTA Red Line train, Flash, sped out of Alewife to start his day. “Good morning, old friends!” Flash loved to be fast.
But whenever he passed the oldest train, Rusty, he didn’t say good morning. He laughed. “Rusty, you squeak at every turn! I’m already at Central when you’re just starting!”
Rusty replied softly, under his breath, “Speed isn’t everything, Flash. I’m reliable and trustworthy, and that is more important.” Flash just laughed some more. “It’s so boring to be reliable if you aren’t fast!”
Day after day, Flash ran ahead of Rusty, and day after day Rusty movedslowly and steadily. Then one rainy afternoon, Flash got into some trouble. He was racing through the tunnel between Park Street and Downtown Crossing when he suddenly halted to a stop. His motor coughed, and everything went dark. “Oh no,” Flash whispered.
Passengers looked around nervously, and people muttered complaints under their breaths. Flash tried to start again, but he couldn’t. This had never happened to him before. Up ahead, Rusty felt the silence and knew something was wrong. He turned his headlights into the dark tunnel and saw Flash. Without a word, Rusty rolled up to him and coupled to him. “Hold on,” he said, steadily pushing Flash in front of him.
Rusty pushed and pushed. His wheels squeaked, but he kept moving steadily until they reached Downtown Crossing together
“Why did you help me, even when I was mean to you?” Flash asked, a little embarrassed.
“Because you needed help, and that's what friends do,” Rusty replied.
“I’m sorry,” Flash sighed, “You’re right, fast isn’t always everything, and I was so mean to you because I didn’t understand you. But now I do.”
“It’s okay, Flash. You learned, and that's what matters.”
From that day on, whenever they passed each other, Flash would slow down just a little, and they would smile.
Talk about the Text
1. Rusty helped push Flash when his motor broke down. Can you share a time when you helped a friend who was having a hard day?
2. If you were a train zooming down the tracks, what color would you be and what would your name be?
3. Flash the train loved going super fast, but Rusty was slow and steady. Do you like to run as fast as you can, or take your time?
About The Author
Fionnuala was born and raised just outside of Boston. In her free time, she loves spending time with her family and friends, photography, singing, and listening to music. She hopes to study engineering in the future.
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